


The Mix Up

by Dr_Rigatoni



Category: Captain America (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Mob, Drug Abuse, Drug Addiction, F/M, Im a slut for mob aus, Its a lot, M/M, Suicide, Swearing, as is necessary with my characters, shitty parenting, we just vibing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2020-05-27
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:42:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,776
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24378169
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dr_Rigatoni/pseuds/Dr_Rigatoni
Summary: Adrien Bravo finds herself in a sticky situation when she’s kidnapped by mob boss Steve Rogers after being mistaken for a criminal with the same name
Relationships: Steve Rogers/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 16





	1. Chapter 1

Twenty years ago

“I want to see my daddy! I want to see my daddy! Let me see my daddy!”  
The little girl kicked and screamed. Tears streamed down her face, making everything blurry. The police had shown up. Everyone was running around. The policeman had grabbed her. Nobody was letting her see her daddy. Why was nobody letting her see her daddy?

She bit the policeman holding her and ran into her parents’ bedroom straight into Daddy’s arms. He had to be hurt. He had blood all over his arms and legs and neck. He was sleeping and he wouldn’t wake up.  
“Daddy, wake up! Daddy, you’re hurt! Daddy, you’re bleeding! Daddy, please, wake up.” 

Daddy wouldn’t wake up. She shook him and hit him, but no matter how hard she tried he wouldn’t wake up. The doctors came. Nobody was helping him. Why was nobody helping him? The doctors took him. Mommy was crying. She took the girl into her arms, away from her daddy. 

“Come now, Adrien.”

Adrien waited for Daddy to come back. They never went to visit him. Only sometimes they would visit a rock with his name on it. Mommy said that he was in heaven. Adrien waited for him to get back from heaven.

Daddy never came back.  
_

Twelve years ago

Mom has been gone more ever since Daddy died. She’s been getting skinnier and skinnier and she’s covered in bruises. The kids at school make fun of Adrien because Daddy was black and Mom was white. Mom says it doesn’t fucking matter and that their parents were all douchebags. Adrien just wanted them to stop. She didn’t really remember Daddy a lot but she did love him, and she certainly missed him, and she was tired of people bad-mouthing him.  
“I think my mom is sick.” Adrien points out to Miss Reynolds one afternoon while waiting for Mom to pick her up. 

Mom had been getting in worse condition, but she hid the reason for her untimeliness from Adrien. She wasn’t really home ever and when she was she brought home “new Daddies” for Adrien. The new Daddies would fight with her constantly until she brought home a new new Daddy. I don’t know why she thought Adrien was still a little kid. She knew that these guys weren’t her dad. Mom keeps mentioning being a sister which scared Adrien. 

Nothing she said ever made any sense. She was a sister, mom was going to make a lot of money, everything was going to end all their suffering. It was all really confusing. 

Miss Reynolds looked down at Adrien sadly. The two had been waiting an hour after the school bell rang. This was a regular occurrence for the two. Mom was never on time. Mom showed up and honked her horn for several seconds. Adrien waved to Miss Reynolds and crawled into the car. 

Miss Reynolds was worried about Adrien. She knew what was going on with Mom and she knew what happened to kids in those situations. She was bright and eager and a good kid. She could really make something out of herself. Miss Reynolds only hoped that she didn’t turn out like Mom.  
_

Eleven years ago

“Look who Mommy brought home.” 

It was a baby. It was a little dark-skinned baby with brown eyes and curly black hair. 

“His name is Jayden. He’s going to be your new baby brother.”

And by a baby brother, she had just meant baby. Mom didn’t change her behavior. She still went out every night. Which was fine and all except now Adrien had a baby to take care of. The childhood that she had stripped from her even further. 

Mom took care of the baby when she was in school at least. Using it as a toy to show off to her friends. Babies are cute. 

“Look at my baby. I’m such a good mother.” 

And the people fell for it. Until they didn’t. Eventually, it stopped being cute, and Jayden was left to fend for himself with Adrien. Two years old apparently wasn’t cute enough. Mom was back to her old self. Gone for days at a time. Jayden and Adrien were alone. 

Adrien had to drop out of high school after sophomore year. She had to get a job to be able to pay for everything Jayden needed. Mom certainly wasn’t going to pay for it. She didn’t care. She’d come for Jayden every now and then, which only confused the boy. 

Adrien did love Jayden. The small little kid was hard not to love. His curls would fall into his face and he’d try to blow the extra strands up. He was a good toddler too. And when he started preschool it was a million times easier to save money because she didn’t have to pay a babysitter as long. The only problem was Mom.

She couldn’t wait to get out of that damn house.  
_

Six years ago 

“This is Lucas-” 

“Yeah, Rachel, thanks for another son.” 

Adrien didn’t give her mother a chance to say anything before she took Lucas into her room. The room now held a twin bed that she shared with Jayden and a crib that she had taken out in preparation for the new baby. She looked down at him. He was trying to fall asleep, brown eyes blinking for more and more time. He had lighter skin than even Adrien causing her to assume he had a white father. 

Adrien placed him in the crib and hurried to make a bottle, figuring he probably wouldn’t sleep for long. She had been waiting by the phone all day. The first of the month was next week and she would be getting a call if she could move into an apartment. It was a two-bedroom, affordable, and away from Rachel.  
Adrien had had her stuff packed for weeks, ever since she turned eighteen. Her phone vibrated showing the number of her potential landlord. She answered it, keeping her voice hushed as to not wake either of the two sleeping boys. 

“Hi is this Adrien Bravo?” 

“This is she.” 

“I’m calling about the apartment you were interested in and I’m pleased to say that with first and last month’s rent you will be able to move in on the first.” 

“Thank you so much, ma’am. This really means a lot to me.” 

She was finally getting out of the house.

_

Present

“We’re going to stay the night at Esteban and Sergio’s house, boys.” 

Adrian pulled the boys onto the subway, paying with her MetroCard. She was used to the stares at this point. A twenty-four-year-old with a twelve and six-year-old clinging to her hips. 

“Where are you going?” 

“Sissy has to go to work.” 

A coworker of Adrien’s had texted and asked if she could work for her tonight at the bar. Usually, she worked day shift so she didn’t need to pay for a babysitter for the boys, but she could use the extra cash. The dentist said that Lucas was going to need braces and braces were expensive. Adrien had called Emelia, and thankfully she had said yes. 

Emelia lived in the apartment across from Adrien and the two had become fast friends and in turn, the kids had become friends. 

The subway stopped and Adrien picked up Lucas to be able to move a little quicker throughout the traffic. The boy had become a strapping strawberry blonde with a knack for wandering off. Thankfully the subway came off only a five-minute walk from their apartment in Harlem.

Adrien dropped the boys off and tied her curls up back into a bun. She was still wearing her uniform from her shift earlier today. All she had to do was drop off her tips and call the bar letting them know that she would be picking up the shift.

She was about to dial when she opened the door to see two men. One extremely tall and buff with long brown hair and… a metal arm?! That wasn’t intimidating at all. The other was a black man. He was shorter and more slender, but still intimidating. 

“Adrien Zora Bravo?”

She looked to see the black bag and rope in their hands. 

“Shit.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Footnotes but like at the top so headnotes:  
> Trying to type with acrylics, Bucky and sam being idiots, more flashbacks

The two men gave very menacing glares, like very menacing. So, logically she followed them when they asked. Muscular men with metal arms are super persuasive. And the other guy was scary too. I guess. Either way, nobody was around to help, and by the time police were called and had arrived Adrien would have already rusted the man’s arm. They got into a very shiny, very black Cadillac. The black man got into the driver’s seat while ‘Robo’ set her down surprisingly gently and followed her into the back seat. The engine started and the car lurched forward.

“You understand, right?” He asks as he places the back over her head, tying her wrists and ankles. Again he was surprisingly gentle. One arm was cold while the other was searingly hot in comparison. 

“Alright, that’s done. Just got to deliver her to Steve then we are done for the day.” Robo gave out a heavy sigh.

“I’m not who you’re looking for,” she paused. “and before you say anything, I know it sounds like a shitty excuse, but there’s another Adrien Bravo. We get mixed up all the time. I don’t know her personally, but she sounds like a real tool. It’s an easy mistake, so you can just drop me off and we’ll let bygones be bygones. Like I wouldn’t even recognize you in a lineup. Well maybe Robo, because of the arm you know- ” 

She had said too much. Nobody had stopped her and she had just kept rambling. Why the hell did nobody stop her? Was she not being annoying? That was hard to believe. 

“You’re right. It does sound like a shitty excuse, huh Sam?”

“Sounds like a shitty excuse to me Robo.” 

There was some shuffling followed by an, “Ow, you asshole. Don’t distract the driver. What would an accident look like on the record?” 

“Eh, Barber’ll handle it.” 

A release of air sounded as Robo sat back in his seat. 

“So, Adrien, you have done a lot of shit.” 

“I’m telling you it’s not me.” 

“Okay, and I don’t work for a notorious crime syndicate.”

“Should you be telling me this?”

“Everyone’s got their vices kid. Yours just happens to be stealing, and gambling, and assault, and what do we have you for? Oh, murder. That’s nice. Steve had us pick up a murderer Sam. See how much he loves us?” 

“This is probably payback for when you beat the shit out of Tony’s parents. You know he’s partial to Tony.”

“I was drunk and they were clearly looking for a fight.” 

“They’re in their eighties Bucky!” 

That was when Adrien realized it. These men were idiots. She sat quietly as the two men bickered. She was very proud of herself for biting her tongue. She was just going to wait it out. All she had to do was prove that they had the wrong person. Easy peasy. Probably. She would wait until they got to where ever they were going and then convince this Steve that she wasn’t Adrien Bravo, well, not the one they were looking for. 

If Adrien ever met this other guy, boy oh boy was she going to give her a piece of her mind. For over a year this other Adrien had been causing problems in her life. Credit cards had been filed in her name. Various cases of tax fraud. False checks. People looking for an Adrien Bravo who slept with their boyfriend. Someone looking for an Adrien Bravo who slept with their girlfriend. Adrien Bravo beat up my dad. Adrien Bravo owes me money. Adrien Bravo isn’t allowed into Walmart anymore after ‘the incident’.

It was slight inconveniences most of the time. Things that could be fixed with a bit of explanation: a call to the credit card company, and extra stop on the subway. But now this Bucky and Sam who worked for the mob were kidnapping her and accusing her of murder! That was not cool. If Adrien was going to be accused of murder it was going to be one she committed. And may or may not be on one Adrien Zora Bravo. But she’d have to get through this mess before any murdering was done.

“Can you tell me why I’m here again? Besides the obvious reason of kidnapping an innocent person.” 

There was some mumbling involving ‘but isn’t it in her rights?’ followed by ‘everything we do is illegal why do we care about her rights?’ 

“Hello?” More mumbling that ended in a grunt and ‘whatever’. 

“Adrien Zora Bravo. You have been accused of murder in the first degree.”

“Is this a trial?” 

There was a silence.

“Adrien Zora Bravo. You have been accused of murder in the first degree for the murder of Phillip J. Coulson…”

_

Several days ago

The lean figure kept close to the wall. She blended in with her surroundings. She was able to look like someone just out for a stroll while still being able to sink into the shadows if she needed to. 

The house she was looking for was like any other suburban house. It had a picket fence and bushes in front. Little windchimes hung on the porch. It made Adrien sick. The person here was happy. He lived alone but he constantly had guests over. The guy wasn’t even that likable. Obsessed with comic books and trading cards. The guy had a squeaky clean record. Not even a speeding ticket. At least according to the police. These people could cover up anything. And this man had to die. 

Phil Coulson. A middle-aged white male. He worked a boring desk job. He had no enemies. His murder would go unsolved. 

All she had to do was sneak in. That part was easy. He left the window unlocked on the second floor. His mistake. He was reading in his bed. Silk sheets. Pity they had to be ruined. 

Then she would take out her knife, cutting his throat and ulnar artery. His death would be practically painless. Adrien wasn’t a monster. This was why she waited until after he was dead before delivering her message. She would clean up her mess. Then silently make her way out the way she came in.

It was supposed to be that easy. She was supposed to be in and out. But of course, it didn’t happen like that. A friend came over. Right as she was coming out the window. He looked her dead in the eye and you could tell he recognized her. He had clearly recognized her. Panic was starting to overtake her as she waltzed back out into the street. Back into blending in. 

She tried to watch her back and not look conspicuous. She knew how to tell when someone was following her and she knew what to do when someone was following her. Why hadn’t she killed that guy? Then there would be no witnesses. She knew better. But she panicked. She was supposed to be in and out. She always had plans for what-ifs, but there wasn’t supposed to be a what-if. He wasn’t supposed to have any friends. Everyone was on their own business. She was going to be in so much trouble. This was bad news. 

Rage was a single word that could describe Steve Rogers when he found out. Pure unadulterated rage. Now, Steve was a patient man, he really was. Short tempers don’t do much for you except make you enemies. But the absolute audacity of the person who did this was unmeasured, causing unmeasured levels of furiousness in Steve. 

You don’t just come into his town and kill his people. You don’t do it. Not without consequences following. The last person that crossed Steve Rogers probably couldn’t tell you much from God’s Acre. 

Nat had tried to calm him down before going into Coulson’s but when Steve was pissed he was pissed. He had burst through the barricade of people to see the man. It was impossible to see anything with Steve’s investigation team keeping out possible contaminators. But carved onto Coulson’s chest was the phrase ‘This is a Warning’.

_

“Jesus Christ, that’s terrifying. You should be finding this guy.” 

“Yeah, that’s what we did, genius.” 

“Except that’s not me, genius.” 

Completely aware that there was no way to convince these two of her innocence, she decided to wait in silence until they got there, which wasn’t very long, thank god. She probably wouldn’t have been able to keep up her resolve for a whole lot longer. The car stopped and shut off and instead of untying her legs, Bucky swung her over her shoulders, ignoring Adrien’s pounding and protests. They went through several doors before he plopped her down on a chair. 

“Thanks a lot, dickhead now my asscheeks are gonna be bruised.” 

A new voice was introduced and she could only assume it was this so-called Steve. The back was ripped off of Adrien’s head to reveal a cold blue gaze staring at her. The malice quickly turned to confusion though. 

“Who the fuck is this?” 

“It’s Adrien Bravo like you asked.” 

Steve continued to stare. The confusion turned into annoyance, then one of slight pity. 

“This is the wrong person.” 

“That’s what I’ve been trying to say!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments mean the world to me. Every single interaction makes my day. So don't be afraid to start up a conversation with me. I'm @its-not-captain-america on tumblr


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Headnotes: they're not in love yet because they just met ya nasties, Bucky and adrien flirting, mentions of sex but like nobody is having sex, she's still tied up which is also not good, I was going to make her and bucky buddies but Arielli said she was to bond with thor, then she still bonded with bucky

“James, you never cease to amaze me.”

Steve finally tore his gaze away from Adrien, and she had to admit she was a little relieved. He intimidated her, and that took a lot, granted he was a feared crime lord so maybe it was in the job description: be scary to look at. Check. 

“Uh oh. Pulling out the first name.” Sam leaned into Bucky’s, (James’?) side and whispered. Well, it wasn’t really a whisper but he tried. 

“Don’t think you’re off the hook Wilson.” 

“Uh oh. Pulling out the last name.” Bucky mocked. 

Adrien let out a huff of laughter. Because, holy shit she was about to be killed by guys with the IQ of drunk puppies, and maybe the personalities as well. 

“Excuse me, sir,” Suddenly they were all looking at her and they all had the stare. Jesus Christ. “are you going to kill me?” 

Steve cocked his head and raised an eyebrow. There was that stare again. Why did it give her shivers? He chuckled before settling on an amused grin. 

“No, dear, I’m not going to kill you." 

Thank god. At least she could relax a little. She could acknowledge her surroundings in a manner that wasn’t looking at what she thought was the last place she’ll see. She could look at the men who stood before her and holy shit, were they this hot the whole time? Of course, now that she wasn’t worried about imminent death the tight hold she had on her tongue went in the trash to the dump into the incinerator. 

“Well that’s a fucking relief, my ass hurts, so maybe if I’m not gonna die, one of you hunks could show me to a more comfortable seat.” 

She clasped her hand over her mouth. If she wasn’t going to be murdered before she certainly was now. Sam and Bucky exchanged wide-eyed glances, jaws slack before looking at Steve. Her whole life depended on his facial expression. Would his perfectly smooth skin be wrinkled in anger? Okay, he’s a criminal, maybe picturing how scary his gorgeous blue eyes would be when angry isn’t a good idea. Yeah let’s file that away and put it in the drawer that we never think about along with our eating habits, the fact that the Zodiac Killer was never caught, and our creepypasta phase.

She finally opened her eyes that had, sometime in her fear and embarrassment had screwed shut. He looked amused. Thank god. He has a sense of humor. 

“Of course, how rude of me. Come along Miss Bravo.” 

Again, her mouth betrayed her. “How am I supposed to follow you when I’m tied up like I’m about to have kinky sex. Which, not going to lie, would really bring up my mood right now.” 

So long to her dignity. Steve chuckled and signaled to Bucky to untie the ropes.

“You have quite the mouth on you don’t you?”

“Yeah and I’m pretty good with it too.” 

“I’m going to get the lady situated, you two wait, we’re going to have a chat afterward.” 

Steve gripped her arm firmly but not so much as to hurt her. That seemed to be a tendency with these guys. Weren’t they supposed to be like monsters? You know, brutal, cold-blooded criminals? Steve was silent the whole walk. He kept his eyes forward and so did Adrien she didn’t even kind of trail behind to maybe check out his ass. She didn’t. 

They came to a lovely room filled with lounge chairs and leather couches. Another handsome man stood by the door. Was it a requirement that you had to be hot to be in the mob or something? He was big and bearded and had long blond hair and also a criminal. 

“Thor, I need you to watch Miss Bravo here while I attend to some things. I’d rather she be in the office as she’s not exactly mobbed up.” 

He turned to face her. “There are food and drinks, just ask Thor. He can get you anything you like. Nobody will bother you in the office, and I will be back to address our situation.:” He said a few hushed words to Thor before exiting.

“Thor, huh?” 

He raised an eyebrow at her. Okay, yeah he was a criminal, but like a little flirting never hurt anybody, did it? 

“Like the Norse god?” 

“Miss Bravo,” 

“Call me Adrien.” 

“Adrien, I was born during a lightning storm. The storm started when my mother was first having contractions and ended as soon as I stopped crying. Or so my mother said.” 

“Well, Thor, I can say with certainty that that is actually very badass”

“If you don’t mind me asking, why are you here Miss Bravo?” 

“Adrien. And that, my friend, is a long-ass story.” 

By the end of that long ass story, which took forever to get through because of Thor adding his input and Adrien getting sidetracked, the two were laughing like hooligans. Like absolute madmen. Like nutzos. Like, they were laughing really hard. Every time they would calm down Thor would let out a breathless wheeze causing Adrien to burst into another fit of giggles. If they were being honest neither of them knew why they were laughing anymore. Not entirely. Every now and then Adrien would let out a loud, “Another!” before dissolving into more laughter. 

Then the door opened. Adrien once again found herself meeting the intense gaze of Steve. The two tried to hush their laughter. Adrien mumbled out a ‘sorry sir’. Adrien shrugged and made a face at Thor, who let out a boisterous laugh. 

“I like this one Boss.” 

“Thank you, Thor. I would like to speak with Miss Bravo now. Tell Bucky that he can count the cash now if he would.” 

Thor mouthed a ‘good luck’ before exiting the room. Leaving Adrien alone. With Steve. He gestured for her to sit before taking his place behind the desk.

“Miss Bravo, I am Steve Rogers. I run this establishment. Now you understand, Miss Bravo, that I can’t just let you walk away from this. It’s a liability.”

“So you are going to kill me.” 

“Of course not. We will just need to take measures to ensure our friends at the police station don’t hear about this incident. You understand.”

“Hey boss man, I’ve got bad news.” 

Bucky burst into the room. He had tried to appear laid back, but his eyes displayed panic. He threw down a duffel filled with hundred-dollar-bills. 

“Buck, we are trying to let Miss Bravo out of here relatively scot-free. How are we supposed to do that when you come running in her with garbage business dealings. Do you want us to have to kill her?” Steve looked thoroughly annoyed. 

“No, no, no. I would never want such a lovely lady to die.” 

Adrien winked. “Oh, I’m sure you could keep me alive.”

She eyed the bills again. She had never seen so much money in her life, not even on a bank statement. Money like that could pay for braces. Money like that could pay for a lot of things. 

“That’s a fat fucking stash of cash.” 

“Yes, and it’s all fake. The cash from Rumlow’s payment, it’s all counterfeit.”

Anger flooded Steve’s eyes. It was only for a second, but she never wanted to see it again, let alone be on the receiving end of it. She almost felt bad for this Rumlow guy. 

“Could you two, if it isn’t too difficult for you, fetch Rumlow for me. I need to speak with him” 

Bucky quickly hurried off.

“Mr. Rogers sir if you don’t mind me asking, do you make that kind of money regularly?” 

It was hard not to notice the expensive clothes and lavish furniture. Clearly, somebody had money, and Adrien needed money. Adrien wasn’t averse to breaking the law when it came to providing for her two boys. They were her sons and they were going to get the best damn life they could live. 

“That kind of money, when actually paid, is a small portion of the money that we earn. Employees are paid based on time commitment, loyalty, and type of job. But to answer your question, yes, that kind of money is made regularly.” 

“So, if someone were to be interested, hypothetically, in a job offer, how would they go about that?”

For a vicious criminal, Steve had a very expressive face. Weren’t these guys supposed to be stoic? Was everything in the godfather wrong? Or perhaps she was just more perceptive than most people?

“I’m an excellent worker with flexible morals and a strong will, and I can fight, and I need the money for my brothers, sir.” 

“Well, that’s admirable Miss Bravo but it’s a little more complicated than just signing up. We’ll have to do a background check, we’ll do an interview, a skill assessment. This would of course take several weeks. Here, I have some paperwork you can fill out.” 

“Okay, thank you for your consideration, sir. I really have to head home now. I have to take the boys to school in the morning.”

“I’ll call you a car. Perfect timing. Bucky, can you drive Miss Bravo back to her residence? I’ll deal with Rumlow. We’ll be in touch, Miss Bravo.”

He left and Bucky led Adrien to a car similar to the one she was in earlier. It was all very silent as they got in. There was a tension in the air. 

“Wow, it’s nice to sit in the front this time.” she tried. 

Bucky gave her half a smile. They rode in silence until they reached her house.  
“Hey, you should put some ice on that.”

She pointed to the blooming black eye he was sporting. There were also several cuts on his face and hands. He probably had several bruises on his torso as well. 

“I’ll be fine-”

“Absolutely not. You come inside. I’ll get you fixed up right now.”

She walked around and grabbed his arm, pulling him out of the car and into her apartment. 

“Shirt off and sit.” 

“Well, at least take me out to dinner first Miss Bravo.” 

He still did as she asked, sitting on the island and removing his shirt, confirming her suspicions of further injuries. She grabbed the first aid kit and an ice pack before coming up to him to assess his injuries.

“Adrien. And I might just take you up on that offer Bucky.” 

She gave him the ice pack to place on his eye. After cleaning the blood off of his face and stomach it was clear that the only actual issue was a split lip and eye. She was able to apply some Neosporin and butterfly bandages. She kissed the top of his forehead before freezing. 

“I’m so sorry, I’m just used to fixing up the boys and, and, and I-” 

“It’s quite alright. I should be heading out though.”

“Well, I’ll be seeing you.”

Bucky gave a sly grin before shutting the door on himself. 

“You bet your ass you will.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments mean the world to me. Every single interaction makes my day. So don't be afraid to start up a conversation with me. I'm @its-not-captain-america on tumblr

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comments mean the world to me. Every single interaction makes my day. So don't be afraid to start up a conversation with me. I'm @its-not-captain-america on tumblr


End file.
